Impact on reproductive performance and body condition in a small limpet parasitized by a large castrator pea crab

OCAMPO EMILIANO HERNÁN; MACARENA PÉREZ GARCÍA; NUÑEZ JESÚS DARÍO; LUPPI TOMÁS ATILIO

Journal of Morphology

John Wiley and Sons Inc

Año: 2021 vol. 282 p. 1604 - 1615

Parasitic castrators utilize the energy reserves that the host allocates on reproductionresulting in sterilization of the host. However, whether other processes (e.g., growth)are also impaired depends on the balance between the castrator´s energy requirementsand the available resources that the castrated host does not use in reproduction.We investigated whether the castrator pea crab Calytraeotheres garthi altersbody condition, reproductive performance, and occurrence of copulation in its limpethost Bostrycapulus odites. For this purpose, we examined the anatomy of the ovary,the seminal receptacles, and the body condition of parasitized and unparasitized limpets.The histology of the female gonad of parasitized limpets revealed the ovariantubules are smaller and characterized by a greater proportion of intertubular andintratubular free space compared with non-parasitized individuals. The body conditionof female limpets from all sizes (during summer) and those larger than ~16 mm(during spring and autumn) were impacted by the pea crab. These results are in contrastto that previously reported in the comparatively larger limpet species Crepidulacachimilla, in which the same pea crab species does not alter or even increase thehost body weight. We concluded this pea crab species could drastically impair itshost´s reproduction and body condition although deleterious effects are speciesspecificand likely depend on limpet body size. The histology of seminal receptaclesrevealed an uncommon disposition of spermatozoa (i.e., excessive debris and acrosomesdetached from epithelium) in seminal receptacles of some parasitized limpets.However, this analysis failed to determine whether sperm derived from present matingsor previous pea crab infection. Further studies are needed to address whetherpea crabs interfere with the mating behavior of limpets and if the alterations in spermdisposition are a consequence of castration.